The injury to her right knee ended her day, and also left the Eagles scrambling in their first district final four since 2002. Exeter recovered to play competitively, but lost 3-1 to Spring Grove in the semifinals and by the same score to Manheim Central in the third-place match.

"I wish we could have played the match under different circumstances," said coach Jason Grove, whose team goes into state play Tuesday against District 1 champion Bishop Shanahan. "But all things considered, I'm not too disappointed with how we played."

The Eagles trailed 12-10 in their first game when Hennessy suffered the injury. The junior, who is second on the team in kills, was helped to the bench and spent the rest of the day on crutches.

"She's just a great kid," said Grove of Hennessy, who had 12 kills and 10 digs in a quarterfinal win over Garden Spot Thursday. "She offers a lot besides her ability. It's just a very damaging loss for us."

The Eagles looked a bit unnerved after the injury, as the Rockets went on a 6-2 run to take control. Exeter battled back from a 21-14 deficit in the first game to get within a point before falling 25-23.

"I'm not surprised that they'd be a little shaken up by it," said Grove. "I think they knew she didn't just roll her ankle or tweak her knee a little bit. That takes a little wind out of your sails when one of your best players is injured in game one. Even with all that, it was 25-23."

Exeter was behind throughout in a 25-18 loss in the next game. The Eagles went on a 6-1 run to finish the third game and win 25-20 and force a fourth game, but a late rally wasn't enough in a 25-22 defeat that clinched match for the undefeated Rockets.

The Eagles lost again in four games in the third-place match, which isn't where they hoped to finish the day.

"It's a tough match to play," said Grove. "If the seeding was different for states, it would mean a lot more, but the way it breaks down, you're going to play a really tough match either way. I was just glad we got through it without any further injury."

Mary Faust had 71 assists and Kady Faller had 28 kills and 18 digs for the Eagles, who open state play at a site to be determined against state ranked No. 2 Shanahan, which beat Council Rock North 3-1 for the District 1 title.